Always used to have them back in the good old days (Sandbag time?) but when I speak about those glorious gastronomic delights, sprogs look at me as if I'm some kind of inbred village idiot who has a fetish involving breakfast and small guitars.

Anyway it seems to me that no one seems to have them in cookhouses anymore, opting instead for a plate full of breakfast or *argh* a healthy option. So can anyone tell me when the Banjo went out of fashion or is still around and I no longer notice them?

Egg banjos to me were night-time fodder in Northern Ireland. A hotplate would be left on in the cookhouse and cartons of eggs would be piled three foot high. Loaves of bread would be stacked beside them in huge quantities and margerine would be stacked like bricks.

During the night any patrol which came in immediately made for the cookhouse to indulge. There'd be UDR, RUC, Roulement units and any other Tom, Dick or Harry who would be passing through - all sitting around in a cookhouse which would make the Public Health man weep. Eggshells, bread and margarine wrappings strewn everywhere and plates all over the place covered with yellow streaks.

I'd like to think the humble egg banjo has moved on since it's first incarnations. What about Lincolnshire sausage with fried mushrooms and egg, with HP sauce in a crusty roll? Surely a modern classic. Having said that, when you're piss wet through in the field after a fortnight of getting f*cked around, a bog standard egg banjo is worth it's weight in gold.

On one major ex in BAOR we were being feed by the yanks.
What do you want for supper buddy?
Egg Banjo's - Oh just leave out some eggs, bread & butter and we will make them ourselves!
So they did - BOILED EGGS.

I have one for brekkie on Sat & Sun morning.BUT,call me a phylastine here,I toast the bread & use Lidl's bacon off-cuts as it's more like cook house bacon than the expensive Â£1.99 for 4 rasher sh1te!
Even got miss spike hooked on the egg banjo (minus the bacon,she's a veggie!!)

Was eating egg banjos back in the sixties and still get em now as Mrs Crazy likes em as well. Our son currently out in sandpit says he misses them and can,t wait to get back home for one or three. Pukka food. Food of the gods.